Chapter Eighteen - The Birth, Incarnation and Humiliation of Christ

This chapter, divided into seven major divisions, is a careful study of the Biblical truth of the doctrines of:

1. the Old Testament prophecies of the life of Christ;
2. the incarnation of Christ;
3. the humanity of Christ;
4. the manliness of Christ;
5. the twofold nature of Christ;
6. the character of Christ; and
7. the humiliation of Christ.

1. THE OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECIES OF THE LIFE OF CHRIST

The Old Testament, written over a period of 1000 years and written several hundred years before the time of Christ, contains some three hundred prophecies of the coming Messiah. The fact these prophecies were written at least two hundred years before Christ is proven by the Septuagint [LXX], the Greek translation of the Old Testament written in 200 BC, and by the Dead Sea Scrolls some of which are dated over 200 years before Christ as well.

The following table shows the approximate dates of Old Testament books (References: John H. Walton, Chronological and Background Charts of the Old Testament, 1994 Edition, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids; Roy R. Matheson, Old Testament Survey, 1989 Edition, Moody Bible Institute):

The Approximate Dates of Old Testament Books

All of these ancient prophecies were fulfilled in the one person of Jesus Christ, and they provide solid confirmation:

1. for His credentials as Messiah;

2. for His claims as the Son of God and Savior;

3. for His unique life in comparison to all the other religious leaders of the world; and

4. for our hope and confidence that truly He and He alone is the one to whom we (and the world) must look for salvation and meaning in life.

The Old Testament prophecies of the life of Christ are divided into the following four categories:

1. the lineage of Christ;

2. the birth of Christ;

3. the ministry of Christ; and

4. the death, burial, resurrection and ascension of Christ.

1.1 The Lineage of Christ

Concerning Christ's lineage, it was predicted that He would be of the:

1. Son of God (compare Isaiah 9:6 with Matthew 1:23; 16:16; Luke 1:35);

2. seed of the woman - i.e. virgin birth (compare Genesis 3:15 with Matthew 1:22-23; Luke 1:26-38);

3. seed of Abraham (compare Genesis 22:18 with Matthew 1:1-2; Luke 3:34);

4. tribe of Judah (compare Genesis 49:10 with Matthew 1:1-3; Luke 3:33);

5. family of Jesse (compare 1 Samuel 16:1; Isaiah 11:1, 10 with Matthew 1:6; Luke 3:32);

6. house of David (compare 1 Samuel 16:12-13; 2 Samuel 7:12-17; Isaiah 9:6-7 with Matthew 1:1, 6-7; Luke 1:32-33; 3:23-38); and

7. the royal line cut off and cursed, yet the promise preserved (Jeremiah 22:28-30; Matthew 1:1-17; Luke 3:17-38).

Jeremiah 22:28-30 clearly shows the royal line was to be cursed and cut off. Included in the royal line of David through Solomon was Jeconiah (or Coniah) (Compare Jeremiah 22:28-30 with Matthew 1:1-17; Luke 3:17-38). The curse clearly states that no physical seed of Coniah could ever occupy the throne of David. This means the royal line of David through Solomon was cut off.

But what about God's promises to David concerning his throne and kingdom? Are they abrogated and thus fulfilled in the spiritual reign of God in the church as many teach today? Is God finished with the nation of Israel? Will there be then no millennial reign? The answer is and emphatic NO! God is not finished with Israel. And YES, there will be a millennial reign! God’s promises to David are not abrogated and the reason they are not is because of the Immanuel promise and its fulfillment in the birth of Jesus Christ.

How does the virgin birth accomplish this? Through the virgin birth Jesus became the legal son of Joseph by adoption, but the physical son David through Mary. Joseph, who was in the royal line of David through Solomon, gave Jesus legal title to the throne by adoption (Matthew 1:1-17). Mary, by the Spirit-wrought miracle of the virgin birth, made Jesus a literal son of David through Nathan another one of David's sons (Luke 3:23-38).

1.2 The Birth of Christ

As to His birth, it was foretold that He would be:

1. born around AD 0-4 and cut off around AD 30-33 (compare Daniel 9:24-27 with Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:29-38; see also my explanations in Section 4.4, Chapter 4 of the course: Bible Prophecy);

2. born of a virgin (compare Isaiah 7:13-14 with Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:26-35);

3. in the town of Bethlehem Ephratah (compare Micah 5:2-3 with Luke 2:1-7; Matthew 2:1-6); and

4. announced by the stars (compare Numbers 24:17 with Matthew 2:1-2).

The Micah prophecy was well known by Israel and when the men from the east came seeking the one born King of the Jews and inquired of His birth, the religious leaders told Herod precisely where He was to be born, in Bethlehem. It is an interesting sidelight that there are two Bethlehems mentioned in the Bible. One was in the territory of Zebulun, in the northern part of Israel (Joshua 19:15). The other was in the territory of Judah, and was also known as Ephratah. The prophecy of the birthplace of the Messiah is so exact that it distinguishes between these two, and specifies that He would be born in Bethlehem Ephratah.

1.3 The Ministry of Christ

Isaiah predicted that:

1. He would be announced by a forerunner (compare Isaiah 40:3; Malachi 3:1 with Matthew 3:1-3; Mark 1:1-4; Luke 3:4-7; John 1:23-24);

2. anointed by the Holy Spirit (compare Isaiah 11:2; 61:1 with Matthew 3:16; Mark 1:10; Luke 3:22; John 1:33); and

3. His ministry would begin in Galilee (compare Isaiah 9:1-2 with Matthew 4:12-16).

1.4 The Death, Burial, Resurrection and Ascension of Christ

The manner of His death, by crucifixion, was clearly outlined in the Old Testament. It was prophesied that He would be:

1. betrayed by a familiar friend (compare Psalm 41:9 with John 13:18);

2. for thirty pieces of silver (compare Jeremiah 18:1-6; Zechariah 11:12-13 with Matthew 26:14-15; 27:3-10);

3. He was to die for others (compare Isaiah 53:5, 10-11 with Matthew 20:17-19; Luke 18:31-33);

4. He was to die with transgressors (compare Isaiah 53:12 with Matthew 27:38; Luke 23:32-33);

5. His enemies were to cast lots for His clothing (compare Psalm 22:18 with Matthew 27:35; Mark 15:24; Luke 23:34; John 19:23-24);

6. His hands and feet were to be pierced (compare Psalm 22:16 with Luke 23:33; John 19:23);

7. His side was to be pierced (compare Zechariah 12:10 with John 19:34);

8. vinegar and gall were to be given to Him (compare Psalm 69:21 with Matthew 27:34; Mark 15:36; Luke 23:36; John 19:28-30);

9. none of His bones was to be broken (compare Psalm 34:20 with John 19:33-36);

10. His burial in a rich man's tomb (compare Isaiah 53:9 with Matthew 27:57-60; Mark 15:42-46; Luke 23:50-53);

11. His resurrection (compare Psalm 16:8-10 with Matthew 28:1-6; Mark 16:9; Luke 24:1-7; Acts 2:25-32; 13:35-37); and

12. ascension (compare Psalm 68:18 with Luke 24:51; Acts 1:6-9; Ephesians 4:8).

Even the exact words He used were foretold, "My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?" (compare Psalm 22:1 with Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34).

1.5 Conclusion

The probability for all these being fulfilled in one person as merely accidental or coincidence is beyond comprehension and, for all practical purposes, mathematically impossible. I conclude that the Old Testament prophecies of the life of Christ are accurate and reliable.

2. THE INCARNATION OF CHRIST

Man has always craved a God who is tangible and visible. As he bows to stones and trees, the idolater is mutely expressing the desire of the human heart for a god who can be seen. Job lamented that although he sought for God, he could not see Him. "Behold, I go forward, but He is not there ... I cannot behold Him" (Job 23:8-9). Philip shared the same longing when he asked, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us" (John 14:8).

God's answer to this universal longing, the incarnation of His Son, was implied in Jesus' answer to Philip, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father" (John 14:9). The clear implication is that in the acts and attitudes of the Father. "No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him" (John 1:18).

2.1 Secular History Acknowledges That Jesus Christ Lived

Even secular history acknowledges that Jesus Christ lived. The Roman historian Tacitus (AD 112) and the first-century Jewish historian Josephus both make mention of Jesus (Geisler, A Popular Survey of the Old Testament, p. 11).

2.2 Meaning of "Incarnation"

The word "incarnation" is derived from the Latin word meaning "in flesh." When it is applied to Jesus Christ it means that His divine nature was united to a true human nature at the time of His conception. The eternal God was "enfleshed"; He became the God-man.

Jesus is fully God, and also fully man. His birth merged a true but sinless humanity with all the attributes of His deity resulting in a single, integrated person with both divine and human natures. To do this, the Lord Jesus Christ condescended to leave all the glories and privileges of His pre-existent state, and become a servant and sacrifice.

2.3 The Incarnation of Christ Mentioned in the Scriptures

The following Scriptures teach that the pre-existent Christ became man:

1. the Word became flesh (John 1:14);

2. since then the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same (Hebrews 2:14);

3. when the fulness of time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman (Galatians 4:4; cf. Romans 8:3); and

4. who, although He existed in the form of God ... emptied Himself, taking the form of a bondservant, and being made in the likeness of men (Philippians 2:6f).

The Gospels (Matthew 1,2; Luke 1, 2) give the historical record of the incarnation and trace it to the miraculous work of the Holy Spirit. That the historical Jesus was in fact the eternal Son of God whose coming was predicted in the Old Testament, was the theme of apostolic preaching (Acts 17:3; 18:5, 28).

2.4 The Reasons for the Incarnation

There are a number of reasons why God became man:

1. to confirm God's promises;

2. to reveal the Father;

3. to become a faithful high priest;

4. to put away sin;

5. to destroy the works of the Devil;

6. to give us an example of a holy life; and

7. to prepare for the second advent.

2.4.1 To confirm God's promises

Jesus became man in order to confirm the promises made to the fathers and to show mercy to the Gentiles (Romans 15:8-12). Beginning with the promise in Genesis 3:15 and continuing through the Old Testament, God at various times promised to send His Son into the world:

1. For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us (Isaiah 9:6);

2. Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel (Isaiah 7:14);

3. But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity (Micah 5:2).

A careful examination of the Old Testament reveals that there are two lines of prediction concerning the coming of Christ:

1. as a Saviour from sin; and

2. as a King in His kingdom.

2.4.1.1 As a Saviour from sin

The purpose of His coming as a Saviour from sin is mentioned in the following Scriptures:

1. prefigured in the sacrifices of the Old Testament (1 Corinthians 5:7);

2. taught in many of the Psalms (Psalm 16:8-10; 22:1, 7f., 18; 41:9-11); and

3. the Prophets (Isaiah 52:14; 53:4-6; Daniel 9:26; Zechariah 11:12f.; 13:1, 7).

2.4.1.2 As a King in His kingdom

The purpose of His coming as a King in His kingdom is mentioned in the following Scriptures:

1. foretold in many Old Testament Scriptures (Genesis 17:6, 16; 49:9f.; Deuteronomy 17:14-20; 2 Samuel 7:12-17; Psalm 2; 8; 24; 45; 72; 89; 110; Isaiah 11:1-10; Jeremiah 23:5; 31:31-34; Ezekiel 37:15-24; Zechariah 14:9);

2. Matthew says, "He was the son of David and also the son of Abraham" (Matthew 1:1);

3. Gabriel had told Mary that the Lord God would "give Him the throne of His father David" (Luke 1:32);

4. Jesus said, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matthew 15:24);

5. however, His own received Him not (John 1:11); and

6. though the multitude acclaimed Him as the Son of David when He rode into Jerusalem on a donkey (Matthew 21:9), a few days later the leaders induced the multitude to ask that He be crucified.

2.4.2 To reveal the Father

In the Old Testament God is revealed as creator and governor. The Old Testament reveals the unity, holiness, might, and beneficence of God. Christ completed the revelation by adding the idea of God as Father (Matthew 6:9). The following Scriptures further illustrate the concept of God as Father:

1. no man has seen God at any time; the only begotten God, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him (John 1:18);

2. to see Him was to see the Father (John 14:9), that the Father Himself loves us (John 16:27);

3. the Father knows that what things we have need of before we ask Him (Matthew 6:8; cf. v. 32); and

4. He will withhold no good thing from His children (Matthew 5:45; John 3:3, 5; 1 John 3:1f.).

The relationship of the child of God to His heavenly Father is a precious New Testament concept.

2.4.3 To become a faithful high priest

Christ came that He might enter into every human experience, apart from sin, so that He might be qualified as a high priest. The reasons for doing this are as follows:

1. The Old Testament high priests were taken from among men in order that they might faithfully represent men (Hebrews 5:1f.). Christ likewise was taken from among men for the same reasons (Hebrews 5:4f.). "It was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their Salvation through sufferings" (Hebrews 2:10). There is, then, a perfection that Christ obtained through His experiences here as a man.

2. Christ had to be made like His brethren in all things that He can sympathize with us. "He had to be made like His brethren in all things, that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted" (Hebrews 2:17f.). "For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin," and it is on this ground that it is said, "Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:15f.).

The very fact that He felt the pangs of hunger, the want of sympathy from others, that He had sleepless nights, that He was weary from the toils of life, that He felt every type of temptation that comes to man, that He was misunderstood, forsaken, persecuted, and delivered up to death, was a preparation for His present priestly ministry.

2.4.4 To put away sin

He came to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself (Hebrews 9:26). Jesus said, "The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many" (Mark 10:45). It is clearly indicated that He needed to become a man in order to die for the sins of mankind. Hebrews reads, "But we do see Him who has been made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honour, that by the grace of God He might taste death for every one" (Hebrews 2:9); and John wrote, "And you know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin" (1 John 3:5).

Several things should be noted:

1. If Christ came to give His life a ransom for many, then we know that He came to redeem men from their sin by His death. Then we also know that His death was substitutionary and, further, that not all, but many will be saved.

2. The idea of putting away sin seems to refer to the scapegoat of the Old Testament. On the annual Day of Atonement one goat was offered in sacrifice, and another was sent into the wilderness after the sins of the people had been confessed upon its head (Leviticus 16:20-22). Thus Christ was "the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29; cf. v. 36). As Isaiah says, "All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him" (Isaiah 53:6).

3. When it is said that He tasted death for every man, the thought is that He did this in place of every man. Those who believe this truth are saved from tasting it themselves. Paul declares that He who knew no sin was made sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21).

Christ came to teach men, to aid them in material and physical respects, to give them an example, and so forth, but above all these things, He came to die for man's sins. His death is the foundational requirement of every other blessing we enjoy.

2.4.5 To destroy the works of the devil

Shortly after Christ appeared to take away sin (1 John 3:5), He also appeared to destroy the works of the evil (1 John 3:8). The Bible say, "Since then the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil" (Hebrews 2:14). This was so that He "might deliver those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives" (Hebrews 2:15).

Christ's coming, particularly His work on the Cross, brought defeat to Satan (John 12:31). Satan:

1. is a vanquished foe;

2. has lost his hold on his subjects;

3. some day will be cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:10); then

4. all that he has wrought through the introduction of sin will come to an end, except for the punishment of those who have been his followers.

Stott suggests, "If, then, the whole purpose of Christ's first appearing was to remove sins and to undo the works of the devil, Christians must not compromise with either sin or the devil, or they will find themselves fighting against Christ" (Stott, The Epistles of John, p. 125).

2.4.6 To give us an example of a holy life

This purpose is implied in many references:

1. take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls (Matthew 11:29);

2. for you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps (1 Peter 2:21); and

3. the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked (1 John 2:6).

The writers of the Holy Scriptures were infallible teachers, but they were not infallible characters. Christ was the only one who was infallible in His teachings and in His character. It was necessary that we should have an illustration of what God wants us to be. Christ is the believer's Saviour, and He is also His example.

To the unsaved the Bible says, believe and live; to the saved, follow in his steps. This order is never reversed. The most powerful incentive to holiness is not precept, but example, especially the example of one with whom we associate closely. When Moses came down from the mountain where he had spoken face to face with God, his face shone (Exodus 34:29). Similarly, the believer is being transformed into the same image of our Lord by "beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord" (2 Corinthians 3:18).

2.4.7 To prepare for the second advent

Scripture says, "Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, shall appear a second time, not to bear sin, to those who eagerly await Him, for Salvation" (Hebrews 9:28). There are two parts to Salvation, namely, the provision of it, and the application of it; and the provision of Salvation must come before there can be application of it.

Now, manifestly, much of the Salvation Christ provided is presently being applied. Believers:

1. are saved from the penalty and guilt of sin the moment they accept Christ;

2. are being saved from the power of sin by Christ's intercession and their yielding to Him of their whole being; but

3. they are not saved from the presence of sin until they are taken to be with Him.

Furthermore, there is the redemption of the body in the future. When Christ died on the Cross, He died for the whole man. But bodily healing is not being granted to everyone today, and bodily immortality is wholly in the future.

So is it also with the redemption of creation. On the Cross, Christ purchased this whole creation, but He is holding back the actual deliverance of creation until the day when the sons of God will be revealed (Romans 8:18-25). It is as "a Lamb standing, as if slain" (Revelation 5:6) that Christ will open the seals of the book, the title-deed to the purchased possessions. His first coming was necessary as a preparation for His second coming.

2.5 The Means of Incarnation: the Biblical Record of Virgin Birth

The Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit brought about the conception of Jesus Christ in a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to a man named Joseph at the time, but the Bible makes it clear that Joseph was not the natural father of Jesus. The Biblical evidences are as follows:

1. The Scriptures are careful to avoid calling Joseph the father of Jesus. In Matthew 1:16 we read, "and to Jacob was born Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ". This careful attribution of Jesus' birth to Mary alone is rooted in the relative pronoun "whom." It is found here in the feminine gender which is obvious in the Greek syntax, but not the English.

2. Luke 3:23 asserts that Jesus was "supposedly the son of Joseph," which could be literally translated, "as it was being thought." For the bulk of society, a virgin birth was a ridiculous idea; thus, unfamiliar with the Scriptures, they thought of Joseph as Jesus' natural father.

3. Further evidence is found in Matthew 1:18-25 which tells us what happened after Mary was discovered pregnant. According to Jewish custom, an engagement is as binding as the marriage vows themselves, and a divorce is required to sever the commitment. Joseph intended to divorce her quietly and graciously, though the Jewish law would have condoned stoning an unfaithful or immoral woman. Later, Joseph is assured by an angel that the pregnancy was the result of a conception by the Holy Spirit, and that it thus fulfilled the ancient prophecy of Isaiah 7:14: "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel."

4. Luke 1:26-38 gives additional details concerning the virgin birth. When Mary asks how she is to conceive apart from sexual relations, the angel Gabriel answers, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy off-spring shall be called the Son of God." An act of creation occurred in the womb of Mary similar to God's creation of the material universe in Genesis 1:1 - out of nothing, and through His power.

2.6 Results of the Virgin Birth

The most significant feature of the virgin birth is that it was the only way to produce a "holy offspring." The term "holy" means "without sin." The most important purpose of such a birth was miraculously to prevent the transmission of original sin. Jesus possessed true humanity as Adam had from His creation, but, like Adam originally, He had no sinful tendencies, tendencies all of Adam's descendants have had as a result of the Fall.

The more obvious result of the virgin birth is the fact that Jesus became the God-man. Luke 1:35 says that He is the Son of God, and Matthew 1:23 calls Him "Immanuel," a name that implies incarnation for it means "God is with us."

2.7 Mystery of Virgin Birth

If, as science demands, every event must have an adequate cause, then the presence of a sinless Man in the midst of universally sinful men implies a miracle of origin. Such a person as Jesus was demands such a birth as the gospels record. The how of the birth becomes believable when the who of the birth is taken into account. Only in isolation from the unique Person who was born does the virgin birth create difficulties. Would not the pre-existence of Christ necessitate some such miracle of birth?

An orthodox Jew once asked a Jewish Christian,

"Suppose a son were born among us today, and it was said of him that he was born of a virgin, would you believe it?"

"Yes," replied the other, "I would believe it if he were such a son!"

In his Cur Deus Homo, Anselm reviewed four ways in which God can make man:

1. By the law of natural generation - a man and a woman.

2. Without the agency of either man or woman - as Adam.

3. A man without a woman - as Eve.

4. Through the divine empowering of a man and a woman both past age - as Abraham and Sarah.

If these be admitted, as they must be if the Scripture records are accepted as authoritative and trustworthy, it is but a step to believe that:

"Jesus was born of a woman without a man, that He was begotten of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 1:20; Luke 1:35).

If we accept that Jesus was the incarnate Son of God, does not belief in the virgin birth become logically inevitable? Who could be the Father of the Son of God but God Himself?

This doctrine was accepted by the early church and is included in all the great Christian creeds. Justin Martyr included it among the cardinal items of Christian belief. The apologist Aristides accepted it. Ignatius insisted on it, and those three lived very close to the apostolic age and to the documents setting forth the virgin birth.

2.8 Meaning of Virgin Birth

What does the term "virgin birth" mean? Several wrong concepts of virgin birth are listed below:

1. It does not imply that Jesus was born in a manner different from other children. He was born in exactly the same way as any other baby.

2. Nor does it suggest that there was merely a miraculous conception as in the case of Elizabeth, who was past age.

3. It does not mean immaculate conception as taught by the Roman Catholic Church, for that dogma asserts that Mary was conceived and born without original sin, a claim for which there is no Scriptural support.

It was a virgin conception entirely without parallel. Contrary to the course of nature, Jesus was miraculously conceived in the womb of Mary. In His case the ordinary processes of the transmission of the racial heritage were interrupted by the miraculous conception.

Such a birth was foreshadowed in the following Old Testament Scriptures:

1. The earliest Bible Prophecy implies this unique event. "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel" (Genesis 3:15). Only here are the words "her seed" used. Elsewhere it is uniformly the seed of the man. This is a unique conception.

2. The sign divinely given to Ahaz was that "a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:14). Matthew saw their fulfillment in the manner of our Lord Jesus' birth. The Hebrew word of "virgin" used here (transliteration, almah) is alleged by opponents of the supernatural that the word means simply a young woman of marriageable age, not necessarily a virgin, for which bethulah is the term used. However, the correct meaning of the word bethulah is used of a bride weeping for her husband instead of a virgin. While, in any other passage of Scripture almah means an unmarried maiden.

2.9 Alternatives to Virgin Birth

It is conceded that the Bible does not demand belief in the virgin birth as a prerequisite for Salvation, but it does indicate that the fact of the virgin birth must be true if we are to be saved. It is possible for a man to be saved without knowing details of the process, just as babies are born without any knowledge of embryology. It is the integrity of the fact, not our knowledge of it, that lays the basis for our Salvation.

If Joseph and Mary, who were sinners by nature and deed, could have given birth to a sinless Man like Jesus, would not an even greater miracle be involved? Let us consider the alternatives that face us if this doctrine is fiction and not fact:

1. The New Testament narratives are proved false and the Book is robbed of its authority on other matters also.

2. Mary, instead of being blessed among women, is branded as unchaste, for Joseph asserted that Jesus was not his son.

3. Jesus becomes the natural child of sinful parents, which at once rules out His pre-existence, with the result that there was not real incarnation.

4. We are deprived of any adequate explanation of His unique character and sinless life.

5. If He was begotten of a human father (i.e. the only alternative to virgin birth), he was not the Son of God, and therefore had no power to forgive sin.

6. If this miracle is denied, logically we should deny all miracles. The question is, Are we willing to accept the supernaturalistic claims of Scripture or not?

2.10 Objection to Virgin Birth

Before considering the objection, I should state that this doctrine is at variance with nothing taught elsewhere in the New Testament; but on the other hand it positively correlates the pre-existence of Christ and His incarnation.

Some contend that Jesus' having only one human parent would not of itself guarantee sinlessness. That may well be true, but we answer that it was not the mere biological fact of having only one parent that preserved Him from the infection (i.e. taint) of hereditary sin. A moral fact cannot be explained merely in terms of physical considerations. His conception was holy and untainted, not because man had no part in the conception, but because He was sanctified by the Holy Spirit, so that His generation was as pure and holy as it would have been before Adam's Fall. It was by the special agency of the Holy Spirit who overshadowed Mary (Luke 1:35). It was by the direct activity of God that Jesus was kept from the contamination of Mary's sinful nature.

3. THE HUMANITY OF CHRIST

3.1 Meaning of the Human Nature of Christ

Meaning of the term "nature." Webster's Dictionary defines nature as:

"The inherent character or basic constitution of a person or thing; essence; an inner force or the sum of such forces in an individual."

Here, we would further define it as all that makes a person who he is, or the sum of the attributes of someone. Within Jesus we find all the characteristics and properties of humanity; His essence was human. We want to avoid the tendency to perceive that Jesus Christ is a sort of superman with whom we cannot identify.

3.2 The Denial of the Real Humanity of Christ

There were some inadequate concepts of Christ held at various times in history. The writers of the four gospels were never in doubt of the reality of Christ's humanity, but this doctrine has not been undisputed in the history of the church:

1. Appolinarius, Bishop of Laodicea, denied the existence of a rational soul in Christ's human nature. Regarding the soul as the seat of sin, he argued that therefore the sinless Son of man could not have possessed a human soul.

2. There were heresies, like Gnosticism, that denied the reality of His body, and Eutychianism, which made even the body of Christ divine.

3. On one hand the Apollinarians and Docetics emphasized the deity of Christ to the exclusion of His true humanity; on the other hand, the Arians and Ebionites held to His humanity, but denied His deity. Both extremes are heresy.

4. In our own day Christian Science pursues a similar line. "Christ is incorporeal, spiritual," wrote Mary Baker Eddy in her Miscellaneous Writings, thus denying the reality of His body and His real humanity.

It is important to refute those who denied the true humanity of Christ. John denounced this heresy, "Every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of anti-christ" (1 John 4:3).

3.3 The Importance of the Issue

The study of the purpose and nature of the incarnation leads easily into an analysis of the two natures possessed by Christ:

1. the divine nature; and

2. the human nature.

We have already discussed the reality of Jesus' deity or divine nature in Chapter 17 of this course. Now we need to investigate the genuineness of Jesus' human nature. Since Christ must become a true man if He is to atone for the sins of men, the question of his humanity is not merely an academic one, but a most practical one. What are the proofs of His humanity?

3.4 The Genuineness of the Humanity of Christ

The evidences of the humanity of Christ are as follows:

1. He had a human ancestry;

2. He had a human development;

3. He had a real body;

4. He had a soul and a spirit;

5. He had human names;

6. He is repeatedly called a man;

7. He had the essential elements of human nature;

8. He experienced human frailty;

9. He was able to die;

10. He was normal in His human appearance; and

11. He was subject to human limitations.

3.4.1 He had a human ancestry

Jesus was born of a woman (Galatians 4:4). He was born of the virgin Mary. This fact is confirmed by the narratives of the virgin birth (Matthew 1:18-2:11; Luke 1:30-38, 2:1-20). Because of this, He is called "the son of David, the son of Abraham" (Matthew 1:1) and is said to be "born of the seed of David according to the flesh" (Romans 1:3). For the same reason, Luke traces his descent back to Adam (Luke 3:23-38). The names of His brothers are given, and His genealogy on both sides of the family is given in detail (Matthew 1:1-16; Luke 3:23-38). This was in direct fulfillment of the promise made to Eve (Genesis 3:15) and to Ahaz (Isaiah 7:14).

3.4.2 He had a human development

Jesus had the ordinary development of human beings. Thus we are told that He "continued to grow and become strong, increasing in wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him" (Luke 2:40), and that He "kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and men" (Luke 2:52). Christ's physical and mental development are the result of the ordinary laws of human growth.

His mental development cannot be ascribed totally to His learning in the schools of the day (John 7:15), but must be attributed largely to the following ways:

1. His training in a godly home;

2. His regular attendance at the synagogue (Luke 4:16);

3. His visits to the temple (Luke 2:41, 46);

4. His study of the Scriptures (Luke 4:17);

5. His use of the Scriptures in His temptation; and

6. His communion with the Father (Mark 1:35; John 4:32-34).

3.4.3 He had a real body

Jesus had, as a result of His conception, a real human body is clear from the following statements:

1. "she poured this perfume upon My body" (Matthew 26:12);

2. "the boy Jesus grew in stature and wisdom as all normal human beings do" (Luke 2:40, 52);

3. "but He was speaking of the temple of His body" (John 2:21);

4. "Jesus partook of the same flesh and blood as the children of humanity" (Hebrews 2:14);

5. "God had prepared a body for Jesus" (Hebrews 10:5; quotes a verse from Psalm 40);

6. "through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ" (Hebrews 10:10);

7. "Jesus could be seen and handled" (1 John 1:1);

8. true believers as those who have confessed that "Jesus Christ has come in the flesh" (1 John 4:2);

9. after His resurrection He said, "Touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have" (Luke 24:39).

3.4.4 He had a soul and a spirit

Matthew 26:38 says that Jesus' "soul" was deeply grieved. Luke 23:46 gives us Jesus' last words before He died: "Father, into Thy hands I commit My spirit."

3.4.5 He had human names

Human names were given Him:

1. The name "Jesus," which means "Saviour" (Matthew 1:21), is but the Greek of the Old Testament "Joshua" (cf. Acts 7:45; Hebrews 4:8).

2. He is called "son of Abraham" (Matthew 1:1) and "son of David," it is occurring frequently in Matthew (1:1; 9:27; 12:23; 15:22; 20:30f.; 21:9, 15).

3. The name "Son of Man" occurs over 80 times in the New Testament. This name is repeatedly applied to Ezekiel (2:1; 3:1; 4:1, etc.), and once to Daniel (8:1). It is used prophetically of Christ in Daniel 7:13 (cf. Matthew 16:28). That this name was regarded by the Jews as referring to the Messiah is evident from the fact that the high priest split his garment when Christ applied this prophecy in Daniel to Himself (Matthew 26:64f). The Jews understood this phrase to mean the Messiah (John 12:34), and to call Christ the Son of Man was equivalent to calling Him the Son of God (Luke 22:69f). The expression implies not only that He is truly human, but also that He is the representative of all humanity (cf. Hebrews 2:6-9).

3.4.6 He is repeatedly called a man

He is repeatedly called a man:

1. John the Baptist (John 1:30), Peter (Acts 2:22), and Paul (1 Corinthians 15:21, 47; Philippians 2:8; cf. Acts 13:38) called Him a man.

2. He was known as a Jew (John 4:9).

3. He recognized as a man (John 7:27; 9:29; 10:33).

4. He was thought to be older than He really was (John 8:57); and He was accused of blasphemy for calling Himself anything but a man (John 10:33).

5. Even after His resurrection, He had the appearance of a man (John 20:15; 21:4f).

Furthermore, He today exists as a man in heaven (1 Timothy 2:5), will come again (Matthew 16:27f; 25:31; 26:64f), and will judge the world in righteousness as a man (Acts 17:31).

3.4.7 He had the essential elements of human nature

Not only did Christ have a physical, human body, He also had other necessary properties of human nature, such as rationality and voluntariness. He could reason, will and feel unhappy. Scripture speaks of Him as "My soul is deeply grieved" (Matthew 26:38; cf. Mark 8:12; John 12:27; 13:21). In saying that He took on our nature, we must always distinguish between a human nature and a sinful nature; Jesus had the former, but not the latter.

3.4.8 He experienced human frailty

He had the following weaknesses of human nature. He was:

1. after fasting in the desert, Jesus felt the pangs of hunger (Matthew 4:2; 21:18);

2. in Samaria He sat by Jacob's well to relieve His weariness (John 4:6);

3. at Lazarus' tomb Jesus expressed great sorrow and wept (John 11:35);

4. on the cross He exclaimed, "I am thirsty" (John 19:28);

5. slept (Matthew 8:24; cf. Psalm 121:4); and

6. tempted (Hebrews 2:18; 4:15; cf. James 1:13).

Christians have in heaven a high priest with an unequalled capacity for sympathizing with them in all the dangers and sorrows and trials which come their way in life, because He Himself, by virtue of His likeness to them, was exposed to all these experiences. Again, it must be born in mind that to speak of the weaknesses of Christ's nature does not imply sinful weaknesses.

3.4.9 He was able to die

The conditions accompanying His death, as well as the death itself and the aftermath when the soldiers speared His body, all point to a genuine physical being who died (John 19:33-35).

3.4.10 He was normal in His human appearance

The following Scriptures show that Jesus was normal in His human appearance:

1. So far as the woman of Samaria was concerned, at first Jesus was only another hated Jew. She noted nothing unusual in His appearance (John 4:9).

2. To the two dispirited disciples walking along the Emmaus road, He was only another fellow-citizen (Luke 24:18).

3. Even after the resurrection when Jesus appeared in His glorified body, Mary at first mistook Him for the gardener (John 20:15).

4. His own intimate friends mistook Him for another man when they returned from their fishing expedition (John 21:4-5).

These incidents all combine to underline the naturalness and humanness of His physical appearance.

3.4.11 He was subject to human limitations

Our Lord's consenting to be subject to human limitations was part of the mystery of His great self-humiliation. While in His incarnate state He did not renounce His divine powers. His intelligence was so subject to human limitations that He submitted to the ordinary laws of human development. He was no exception. As noted in the above section 3.4.2, He acquired His knowledge through the ordinary channels open to the other boys of His day; through instruction, study, reflection. It would appear that He even voluntarily renounced knowledge of certain future events. "But of that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone" (Mark 13:32).

Like ourselves, Jesus was not self-sustained, but needed prayer and communion with His Father for the support of His spiritual life. In all the great crises of His life, He resorted not to the counsel of men but to prayer to His Father for guidance (Luke 5:16; 6:12; 9:18, 28).

He was subject to human limitations of power. He obtained the power for His divine works not by drawing on His inherent deity, but by depending on the anointing Spirit (Acts 10:38).

4. THE MANLINESS OF CHRIST

Jesus was not only a man, He was a manly man. He has far more frequently been misrepresented as womanly and weak than as masculine and manly.He combined in Himself the gentler graces of womanhood and the virile virtues of manhood. Unfortunately it is the former that have received stronger emphasis.

John Oswald Sanders wrote:

When World War I was over, a sentence in the report of the chaplains of the services confirmed this impression. It said, "The average Tommy believed that Jesus was just and good but just a trifle soft." They never knew that He was Lion of Judah as well as Lamb of God. A young man was being counseled by a Christian man, when a conversation somewhat as follows ensued:

"I do not admire your Jesus. He was rather weak and effeminate. I like a man with red blood in his veins."

"I suppose you heard the ususal Bible stories when you were younger?"

"Oh, yes, I used to love them as a child."

"And I suppose the rugged Elijah who appeared dramatically and fearlessly before the King of Israel and challenged the whole nation would be one of your favorite characters?"

"You have guessed right. I always admired his manliness."

"And in the New Testament, John the Baptist with his unconventional garb and fearless preaching would also attract you?"

"Strangely enough you have lighted on my two favorite Bible characters."

"Then would it surprise you to know that when Jesus asked His disciples whom men said He was, they replied, 'Some say that thour art John the Baptist: some, Elijah' (Matthew 16:14)? If He had been weak and effeminate as you contend, would they have been likely to confuse Him with the rugged Elijah, or the fearless Baptist?"

"I had never thought of that before."

Nor perhaps have many of us so conceived of Him. The term "manliness" does help to impress an important element in the Saviour's character, for people are inclined to think that goodness, innocence, patience, and purity belong to feeble characters, when the fact is far otherwise. The manliness of Jesus can be seen in the following characteristics of His life and ministry:

1. His resolute courage;

2. His fearless utterances;

3. His physical endurance;

4. His courageous silence;

5. His unbending sternness;

6. His remarkable self-control;

7. His blistering denunciations; and

8. His uncompromising frankness.

4.1 His Resolute Courage

Jesus knew more of peril than most, and yet when faced with it He never evinced the slightest fear. The highest form of courage is not that of the blind enthusiast who in a moment of exaltation runs great risks, but that of the man who though clearly foreseeing the consequences of his action, nevertheless continues unwavering.

Though Jesus knew Jerusalem meant for Him suffering and death - and no one ever shrank from death as He did - yet "He stedfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem" (Luke 9:51). When confronted with the traitor and the rabble that accomplished Him, Jesus refused to exercise the divine power He demonstrated on them to effect deliverance. Rather, He invited them to take Him. He faced the suffering and obloquy of the Cross with manly courage. He displayed no fear of disease, of demons, or of men (John 18:3-8; 12:27-28).

4.2 His Fearless Utterances

He is strong man who will voluntarily speak words that must inevitably bring on Him painful consequences. And yet the Lord never withheld, from fear of possible consequences, one word given to Him by His Father.

Hear Him reply to Annas, "I spake openly to the world ... in secret have I said nothing, Why askest thou me? ask them which heard me" (John 18:20-21). His reply to Pilate was equally fearless (John 18:33-37; 19:11).

4.3 His Physical Endurance

Have you ever endeavored to calculate the extent of His travels or the magnitude of His labours during His ministry? In the many tours recorded in the gospels, it is estimated that He traveled on foot about two thousand five hundred miles during the three years, and we need not conclude that every journey was recorded. Those were not unbroken marches, for He constantly stopped to help and heal, to teach and preach.

Ponder the strain imposed on His physique by the constant demands of the crowds milling around Him. Consider the constant drain on His nervous resources. We are apt to overlook the fact that He always helped others at His own expense. Even when the woman secretly touched the hem of His garment, it is recorded that "virtue had gone out of Him" (Mark 5:30). His was costly service. Only a man of extraordinary physique could have endured such unremitting strain.

4.4 His Courageous Silence

It is often more easy to speak than to keep silence. A strong man may be recognized by his silence, and this was true of the Master. He knew when to speak and when to hold His peace. However strong the provocation He never stooped to self-vindication, much less retaliation. Before the craven Pilate and the taunting Herod, both of whom possessed the power of life and death, He maintained a majestic silence. His silences were often more eloquent than His speech (Matthew 26:62-63; 27:12; Mark 15:4-5; Luke 23:9).

4.5 His Unbending Sternness

Nothing is more awe-inspiring than the unbending severity of a kindly man who has been roused to moral indignation. A man who is not tenderhearted becomes harsh and cruel. One who is only tenderhearted is weakly sentimental. But mercy and justice met and were harmonized in the character of the Son of Man.

See the bearing of the divine Lord as He enters His Father's house, which He loved so fervently, only to find it desecrated, "a den of thieves." Mark the flashing of His eye, the resolute step as He advances with uplifted whip of cords and begins to oust the rapacious traffickers (John 2:13-17). Watch Him overturn the bankers' tables. "It is written, My house is the house of prayer," He is saying, "but ye have made it a den of thieves" (Luke 19:45-47).

In this incident we are given a graphic example of "the goodness and severity of God" (Romans 11:22). Our Lord evinced not only moral courage, but no small degree of physical bravery as well.

4.6 His Remarkable Self-control

Not even once did Jesus betray the slightest semblance of lack of self-control. Strong though His emotions were, He always held them on a taut leash. Calm power and self-possession marked all His words and actions.

R.E. Speer wrote:

"Now and then we meet a strong man, who has control over his emotions in the way of repression, and to some little extent of stimulation also, but generally there is a large range of involuntary and uncontrolled emotions which are true and unconscious revelations of the inner life which they express and manifest, or betray ... In Jesus there was no contradiction between the voluntary and involuntary, the unconscious and the controlled. All the manifestations of His inner life were reliable and true, and they constantly increase our awe of Him and our sense of His majesty and mystery."

4.7 His Blistering Denunciations

The tendency of our day is to over-emphasize the love of God and Christ. A preacher who is unafraid to denounce in strong terms the sins of the day, within and without the church, is termed "unChristlike."

But listen to these sentences from the lips of the King of love. "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. Woe unto you ... for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves ... Woe unto you ... for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness ... Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?" (Matthew 23:14-15, 27, 33).

It should be noted that those blistering words were not spoken to the prodigal son or Mary Magdalene, but to the hypocritical ruling class and religious leaders. There is surely no soft effeminacy here.

4.8 His Uncompromising Frankness

Christ never concealed the Cross to gain a disciple. No one ever left all and followed Him who did not have opportunity to count the cost. His followers must be intelligent volunteers. The emphasis of our day is rather on what one gains by becoming a Christian. Jesus never failed to emphasize the cost of following Him. The birds had their nests, the foxes their holes, "but the Son of man hath not where to lay His head" (Matthew 8:20). Following Christ involves a love for Him transcending that for father or mother, wife or child. "Whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple" (Luke 14:27).

In His final agony, with tongue parched, fever raging, and joints dislocated, He was offered an anodyne to deaden His sufferings. "They gave Him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when He had tasted thereof, He would not drink" (Matthew 27:34). He displayed no unmanly shrinking from suffering. He showed Himself every inch a manly man in life's most testing hours.

5. THE TWOFOLD NATURE OF CHRIST

How can there be two natures and yet but one person? Though this is a difficult concept to understand, the Scriptures, nevertheless, encourage a consideration of the mystery of God, even Christ (Colossians 2:2f), and Jesus indicates that a true knowledge of Him is possible through divine revelation (Matthew 11:27).

5.1 Meaning of the Union of the Human and Divine in Christ

What was the result of the two natures coming together?

In theological terminology this phenomenon is referred to as the "hypostatic union." It is taken from the definition of faith in Hebrews 11:1: "the assurance [or substance] of things hoped for". Applied to Jesus, it refers to the union of the two "substances," the human and divine natures, and communicates that each of these nature is actual, not merely similar, and complete, not merely partial.

The great confessions of the church affirm this as one of the cardinal Christian doctrines. Here are two examples:

"He continueth to be God and man, in two distinct natures and one person for ever" (Westminster Shorter Catechism).

"We confess that He is Very God and Very Man; Very God by His power to conquer death and Very Man that He might die for us" (Belgic Confession).

The Council of Chalcedon (AD 451) seems to have used it to refer to the one person (Greek, hupostasis) into which the two genuine natures (Greek, phuses) were united.

5.2 The Purpose of the Union of the Human and Divine in Christ

Why did the Son of God become a human being? The incarnation is not only a unique phenomenon of history but it was absolutely necessary, especially for our eternal well-being. There are several reasons why:

1. Through the incarnation God communicated most fully His character and love. Prior to the coming of His Son, God had spoken through the prophets and the "fathers," but this revelation evidently was not sufficient - a message from the Son of God Himself was required (Hebrews 1:1-2).

2. Through the incarnation redemption was provided through one who was perfect man, thus able to die and atone for the sins of mankind (Hebrews 2:17-18).

3. Through the incarnation a perfect high priest was made available who could sympathize with us, thus encouraging us to approach Him. He offers us mercy when we fail, and grace to enable us to obey (Hebrews 4:15-16).

4. The incarnation provided the ideal mediator, one who fully understands both sides. As God, he can represent and communicate the divine concerns, and as man He can appreciate the human condition (1 Timothy 2:5).

5.3 The Four Essentials

Louis Berkhof (The History of Christian Doctrines, The Banner of Truth, 1978) lists four requirements of a proper view of the union of the human and the divine in Jesus:

1. He is truly God;

2. He is truly human;

3. these two natures are united in one person; and

4. each of these natures remains distinct; that is, there is not a blend into some third substance in which He is neither fully human nor fully divine.

5.4 The Biblical Evidence

Throughout the New Testament the writers assume that Jesus Christ is one person, not two. His behaviour and thinking are always that of one integrated person. In Romans 1:3-4 we find the assumption that Christ is one person, while He is called the "Son of God" (deity) as well as "a descendant of David according to the flesh" (humanity).

Often both natures are displayed or confirmed within one event or passage. For example, John 3:13 says: "He who descended from heaven [display of deity], even the Son of Man [confirmation of humanity]." Or, in John 4 Jesus (obviously one person) is wearied from His journey and apparently thirsty (confirming His humanity), but He displays an intimate knowledge of the woman's past which He could only know in the omniscience of His deity.

5.5 Inadequate Historical Views of Christ (as mentioned in Section 1 of Chapter 17)

Section 1 of Chapter 17 gives a full description of the various heresies in history, and their views of the person of Christ Their errors are as summarized as follows:

1. Arianism erred in regard to both Jesus' deity and humanity, declaring neither to be complete.

2. The Apollinarians and Eutychians both denied Jesus' humanity.

3. The Nestorians did not believe that the two natures were united into one person, Jesus.

4. The Eutychians and Monophysites erred in regard to the distinction of each of the two natures.

Each of the heretical theories is characterized by a deficiency in one or more of the four requirements Berkhof outlined. The deficiency of the false views are illustrated in the following diagrams:

5.6 The Misconceptions of the Union of the Human and Divine in Christ

Certain misconceptions must be clarified:

1. The union between the two natures is not comparable to the marriage relationship, for the two parties to that union remain, after all, two distinct persons.

2. Nor are the natures united by the kind of tie that unites believers to Christ. Nor did the divine nature dwell in Christ in the same way that Christ dwells in the believer, for then He would have been but a man filled with God and not God Himself.

3. The suggestion of a dual personality in Christ is unscriptural. Neither did the Logos occupy the place of the human mind or spirit in Christ, for in that case Christ would have united Himself with an imperfect humanity.

4. Neither did the two natures combine to form a third, for then Christ would not have been true man.

5. Nor yet did Christ gradually take on the divine nature, for in that case the reality of His deity would have been dependent upon the conscious appropriation of it by the humanity of Christ and not a fact per se.

The church at large has definitely condemned these various views as unscriptural and therefore unacceptable.

5.7 The Proof of the Union of the Human and Divine in Christ

If the above misconceptions are in error, how can we show that the two natures are inseparably bound together so as to constitute but one person with two consciousnesses and two wills?

Though there are two natures, there is but one person. And though the attributes of one nature are not to be attributed to the other nature, the two natures are attributed to the one person. Christ cannot be properly described as deity possessing humanity, nor humanity indwelt by deity. In the former case, humanity would not have its proper place, nor would deity in the latter.

The second person of the trinity assumed humanity with all its attributes. It follows that Christ's personality resides in His divine nature, because the Son did not unite with a human person but with human nature. Christ's human nature was impersonal apart from the incarnation; this, however, is not true of the divine nature. So complete was this union into one person that, as Walvoord observes, "Christ at the same moment has seemingly contradictory qualities. He can be weak and omnipotent, increasing in knowledge and omniscient, finite and infinite" (John Walvoord, Jesus Christ Our Lord, p. 116-118), and we might add, localized and omnipresent.

Jesus speaks of Himself as a single person; He does not evidence a split personality. Further, the individuals with whom He came in contact thought of Him as one person with a single and undivided personality. What about His self-consciousness? Jesus evidently was aware at all times of His deity in His divine self-consciousness. It was fully operative at all times, even in infancy. There is evidence, however, that the human nature developed and with it a human self-consciousness came into play. Sometimes He would act from His human self-consciousness, at other times from His divine, but the two were never in conflict.

The same thing is true of His will. No doubt the human will desired to avoid the Cross (Matthew 26:39), and the divine desired to avoid being made sin (2 Corinthians 5:21). In the life of Jesus His will was to do the Father's will (Hebrews 10:7, 9). This He fully accomplished.

5.8 The Nature of the Union of the Human and Divine in Christ

If, then, the two natures of Christ are indissolubly united in the one person, what, in the second place, is the nature of this union? The Scriptures give us the following indications:

1. It is not theanthropic;

2. It is personal;

3. It is incomprehensible;

4. It is mysterious;

5. It is actual;

6. It is demonstrable;

7. It is necessary;

8. It is eternal;

9. It included the human and divine qualities and acts; and

10. It insures the constant presence of both humanity and deity.

5.8.1 It is not theanthropic

The person of Christ is theanthropic, but not His nature. That is, one may speak of the God-man when He wishes to refer to the person; however, one cannot speak of the divine-human nature, but must say the divine and human nature in Christ. This is evident from the fact that Christ had an infinite intelligence and will and a finite intelligence and will; He had a divine consciousness and human consciousness. His divine intelligence was infinite; His human intelligence increased. His divine will was omnipotent; His human will had only the power of unfallen humanity. In His divine consciousness He said, "I and the Father are one" (John 10:30); in His human consciousness He said, "I am thirsty" (John 19:28). It must be emphasized that He is still the God-man.

5.8.2 It is personal

The union of the two natures in Christ is called the hypostatic union. That is, the two natures or substances constitute one personal subsistence. Because Christ did not unite with a human person but with a human nature, the seat of the personality of Christ is in the divine nature.

5.8.3 It is incomprehensible

The great American statesman Daniel Webster was dining with a company of literary men in Boston. The conversation turned upon Christianity. A Unitarian minister opposite him responded,

"Mr. Webster, can you comprehend how Jesus Christ could be both God and man?"

"No sir, I cannot understand it," replied Webster, "and I would be ashamed to acknowledge Him as my Saviour if I could comprehend it. He could be no greater than myself, and such is my conviction of accountability to God, my sense of sinfulness before Him, and my knowledge of my own incapacity to recover myself, that I feel I need a superhuman Saviour."

It is just as heretical to affirm the deity of our Lord while omitting the reality of His humanity, as it is to affirm the humanity while omitting the deity.

5.8.4 It is mysterious

"Without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh" (1 Timothy 3:16), said Paul. In this connection W. Graham Scroggie wrote:

"Christ was human and divine; but we must not think of these as being distinct and separate in Him. Their relation must remain to us a mystery, but the evidence of each is abundant, and the necessity for both is obvious. Had He not been man, He could not have sympathized with us; and had He not been God, He could not have saved us."

The reason for the mystery is that we have no analogies to it in our own nature or experience. Illustrations of such matters are only partial and often confuse rather than clarify. It is a truth of revelation that like many others must be accepted by faith, awaiting the dawn of eternal day for fuller knowledge, for a full explanation. The fact that there is mystery need not prevent us from taking at their full value the Scriptures that teach it.

The correct approach to the subject was indicated by R.A. Torrey, who wrote:

"It is not our main business to reconcile the doctrine of the deity of Christ with the doctrine of the real humanity of Christ. Our first business is to find out what the various passages mean in their grammatical interpretation. Then if we can reconcile them, well; if not, believe them both and leave the reconciliation to increasing knowledge."

Must we reject the doctrine of the Trinity, so clearly taught in the Scriptures, merely because to our minds it is an impenetrable mystery?

5.8.5 It is actual

Jesus was truly God; whatever it is to be God, Jesus was that absolutely. He was equally really man. His deity and His humanity were distinct and separate, and each nature retained its normal attributes. The divine did not permeate the human, nor was the human absorbed by the divine. St. Leo expressed it:

"He united the true 'form of a servant' in which He was equal to God the Father, and combined both natures in a league so close that the lower was not consumed by receiving glory, nor the higher lessened by assuming lowliness."

The Son of God was not changed into a human being, nor did the man Jesus rise to a state of deity. The two natures were so bound as to constitute them a single undivided person, acting with a single consciousness and will. Since the union of the natures was accomplished without the conversion or weakening of either, Jesus Christ cannot be spoken of as God and man. He was the God-man.

Although He possessed those separate and distinct natures, He did not act sometimes by His human and sometimes by His divine nature only. He acted in all things as a single person. He is asleep in the stern of the boat, wearied with His day's service. In a moment He arises and controls the raging storm. Thus the reality of His humanity is seen against the background of His divine power and prerogatives.

Chrysostom has a striking paragraph on this theme:

"I do not think of Christ as God alone, or man alone, but both together.

For I know He was hungry, and I know that with five loaves He fed five thousand.

I know He was thirsty, and I know that He turned the water into wine.

I know He was carried in a ship, and I know that He walked on the sea.

I know that He died, and I know that He raised the dead.

I know He was set before Pilate, and I know that He sits with the Father on His throne.

I know that He was worshiped by angels, and I know that He was stoned by the Jews.

And truly some of these I ascribe to the human and others to the divine nature. For by reason of this He is said to have been both God and Man."

5.8.6 It is demonstrable

In all His ministry our Lord uniformly speaks and is spoken of as a single person. There is no interchange of "I" and "Thou" between Christ's two natures, such as is recorded of the three Persons of the Trinity (e.g. "I in them, and thou in me," John 17:23). Nor does He ever use the plural in speaking of Himself.

It is significant that the powers and attributes of both natures are ascribed to the one personality. We can attribute to the one person what is really appropriate to only one of the two natures, for example, "None of the princes of this world knew [this]: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory" (1 Corinthians 2:8).

It is of the greatest importance in thinking of our Lord's ministry and life on earth, that we make no distinction such as saying that a certain act or saying was divine and another purely human. Both proceeded from the single personality of Christ.

Again, Jesus spoke of Himself as being in heaven and on earth at the same time. "He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven" (John 3:13). This is inexplicable on any other theory than that the two natures were so organically united as to form a single person. "His Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and designated Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by His resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 1:3-4).

5.8.7 It is necessary

The value of the atonement is intelligible only upon the assumption that the two natures were so united in Christ that what each did had the value of both:

1. Had Christ been only man, His death would have meant no more than that of any other martyr who gave himself for others.

2. Had He been only divine, He would have had no real link with humanity, and His death would have been devoid of any redeeming quality.

In the union of the two natures, the atonement becomes not only available, but infinite in its efficacy. Apart from it, Christ could not have been a proper mediator between God and man. His twofold nature enables Him to lay His hand on both:

"His deity affords Him equal dignity with God, His humanity gives Him perfect sympathy with man" (Hebrews 2:17-18; 4:15-16).

But suppose He had been only human. How could He have helped us?

He would have afforded an inspiring example of how to live, but His sympathy with us would have been of little avail. We need not only human sympathy but divine power. Assured of His human sympathy, we know that He is willing to help and save us. Assured of His divine power we know that He is able to help and save us. This willingness and ability combine to make Him our all-sufficient Saviour (Hebrews 7:25).

5.8.8 It is eternal

It seems clear from Scripture that the Son of God assumed forever the humanity of which He partook at His birth. His incarnation is in perpetuity. He could not lay aside His humanity without ceasing to be Son of Man. This does not imply that He is forever subject to the natural limitations of life on this earth but that He has a bodily form such as was manifested to His disciples after His resurrection. He never will cease to have all the essential attributes of humanity.

In the ascension of Christ, humanity attained the throne of the universe. His ascension appearances represent Him as having a literal but glorified body (Acts 7:56; 9:4-6; Revelation 1:9-18).

D.M. McIntyre wrote,

"May we not believe that the Holy Spirit holds in an indissoluble unity the human and the divine nature of our Lord ... The Spirit ... was the Bond of Union between the divine and human natures of the Son."

5.8.9 It included the human and divine qualities and acts

Both human and divine qualities and acts may be ascribed to the God-man under either of His names. Thus we have human qualities and characteristics ascribed to Christ under the following divine titles:

1. "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High" (Luke 1:32);

2. "they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory" (1 Corinthians 2:8); and

3. "the church of God which He purchased with His own blood" (Acts 20:28).

From these we see that God was born and that God died. There are also divine qualities and characteristics ascribed to Christ under His human names:

1. "He who descended from heaven, even the Son of Man" (John 3:13);

2. "what then if you should behold the Son of Man ascending where He was before?" (John 6:62);

3. "the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever" (Romans 9:5);

4. the Christ who died is the Christ who "fills all in all" (Ephesians 1:23; cf. Matthew 28:30); and

5. the one by whom God will judge the world is the man (Acts 17:31; cf. Matthew 25:31f).

5.8.10 It insures the constant presence of both humanity and deity

The humanity of Christ is present with His deity in every place. This fact adds preciousness to the thought that Christ is in His people. He is there in His deity, and by the union of His humanity with His deity, also in His humanity.

The union of humanity and deity in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ is illustrated in the following diagram:

6. THE CHARACTER OF CHRIST

As has been noted, one of the purposes of the incarnation was that Christ might set for us an example (Matthew 11:29; 1 Peter 2:21; 1 John 2:6). It is, therefore, important to study His character in order to know the standard, the ideal, of the Christian's walk.

To cast our eyes upon this wonderful person is to say with Isaiah, "Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts" (Isaiah 6:5).

John says, "These things Isaiah said, because he saw His glory, and he spoke of Him" (John 12:41).

Peter responded in similar fashion as Isaiah when he said, "Depart from me, for I am sinful man, O Lord!" (Luke 5:8). What was so unique about Christ that would make men like Isaiah and Peter respond in the manner they did? Christ possesses the following unique characters:

1. He was absolutely holy;

2. He had genuine love;

3. He was truly humble;

4. He was thoroughly meek;

5. He was perfectly balanced;

6. He lived a life of prayer; and

7. He was a continual worker.

6.1 Christ Was Absolutely Holy

As shown in the following Scriptures, Christ was absolutely holy:

1. He was that "holy offspring" (Luke 1:35).

2. "the Holy and Righteous One" (Acts 3:14).

3. God's "holy servant Jesus" (Acts 4:27).

4. "He was holy in nature, for the prince of this world had nothing in Him" (John 14:30).

5. He was "without sin" (Hebrews 4:15).

6. "He was holy also in conduct, for He was separate from sinners" (Hebrews 7:26).

7. "He always did the things well-pleasing to His Father" (John 8:29).

8. No one accepted the challenge when He bade His enemies, "Which one of you convicts Me of sin?" (John 8:46).

9. Yet He was "tempted in all things as we are" (Hebrews 4:15).

10. He "committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously" (1 Peter 2:22f).

We are to be holy because He is holy (1 Peter 1:16). However far we may fall from being like Christ, we have no excuse for choosing a lower ideal than the Scriptures hold out for us. If we with unveiled face behold "as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, we are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit" (2 Corinthians 3:18; cf. Psalm 34:5). Christ is our example of sinless perfection, and it is nothing short of absolute perfection. He has shown us how to be holy.

6.2 He Had Genuine Love

Paul says that "the love of Christ ... surpasses knowledge" (Ephesians 3:19).

Christ's love goes out, in the first place, toward His Father (John 14:31).

Christ's love is directed also to the Scriptures, in this case the Old Testament:

1. He received these as relating truthfully the events and doctrines of which they treat (Matthew 5:17f).

2. He used Scripture in time of temptation (Matthew 4:4, 7, 10).

3. He expounded certain prophecies in it as referring to Himself (Luke 4:16-21; 24:44f).

4. He declared that the Scriptures cannot be broken (John 10:35).

Christ's love also goes out to men, to men in general:

1. When Jesus looked upon the rich young ruler, He loved Him (Mark 10:21).

2. He was accused of being "a friend of tax-gatherers and sinners" (Matthew 11:19).

3. He so loved the lost that He laid down His life for them (John 10:11; 15:13; Romans 5:8).

4. More particularly, He loves His own. John speaks of "Him who loves His disciples to the end (John 13:1).

5. He loved them as much as the Father loved Him (John 15:9).

6. He loves His own so much that He gave His life for them (Ephesians 5:2, 25).

7. He loves them so much that no one can separate them from His love (Romans 8:37-39).

6.3 He Was Truly Humble

Though equal with God, He emptied Himself, took on the form of a servant, was made in the likeness of men, and then further humbled Himself and went to the ignominious death of the Cross (Philippians 2:5-8).

His humility is also seen in His conduct while on earth:

1. He who was rich, for our sakes became poor (2 Corinthians 8:9);

2. He was born in a stable, for there was no room for Him in the inn (Luke 2:7);

3. He had no place to lay His head when He went about teaching and healing (Luke 9:58);

4. so that certain women whom He had healed of evil spirits and infirmities ministered unto Him of their substance (Luke 8:2f);

5. He had Peter catch a fish to supply the money needed for Him and Peter for the temple tax (Matthew 17:27); and

6. He was buried in a borrowed tomb (Matthew 27:59f).

Further, He associated with the lowly:

1. He was called "a friend of tax-gatherers and sinners" (Matthew 11:19; cf. Luke 15:2);

2. He welcomed the anointing by a woman who was a sinner (Luke 7:37f) and forgave her sins (Luke 7:47f); and

3. The disciples were of lowly origin, and yet He revealed to them the great mysteries of the kingdom (Matthew 13:11, 16f).

Additionally, He engaged in the most menial service:

1. He "did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many" (Matthew 20:28);

2. He washed the feet of His disciples (John 13:14); and

3. Though He was the master of His disciples (Matthew 23:10; John 13:14), He really wanted to be recognized as their friend (John 15:13-15).

6.4 He Was Thoroughly Meek

He Himself said, "For I am gentle and humble in heart" (Matthew 11:29), and Paul exhorts the Corinthians "by the meekness and gentleness of Christ" (2 Corinthians 10:1). His meekness is seen in:

1. His not breaking the bruised reed, nor putting out the smoldering wick (Matthew 12:20; cf. Isaiah 42:3);

2. His gentle dealings with the repentant sinner (Luke 7:37-39; 48-50);

3. His accommodating Himself to doubting Thomas (John 20:29);

4. His tenderness toward Peter subsequent to Peter's denial of Him (Luke 22:61; John 21:15-23);

5. His gentle dealings with Judas the betrayer (Matthew 26:50; John 13:21) and with those who crucified Him (Luke 23:34); and

6. He did not quarrel, nor cry out, nor did anyone hear His voice in the streets (Matthew 12:19; cf. Isaiah 42:2).

In like manner, the servant of the Lord" must not be quarrelsome, but He kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition" (2 Timothy 2:24f).

6.5 He Was Perfectly Balanced

As shown in the following Scriptures, He was grave without being melancholy, joyful without being frivolous:

1. He took life seriously. Isaiah speaks of His life: "He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and like one from whom men hide their face, He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our griefs He Himself bore, and our sorrows He carried; yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted" (Isaiah 53:3f; cf. Psalm 69:9; Romans 15:3; Hebrews 2:10).

2. In addition to being sorrowful, Jesus was joyful. He said, "These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full" (John 15:11), and "These things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy made full in themselves" (John 17:13).

3. We never read that Jesus laughed, though in His teaching He sometimes introduced the humorous and the ridiculous (Matthew 19:24; 23:24; Luke 7:31-35).

4. He wept is clear (Luke 19:41; John 11:35). He sorrowed over those who willingly rejected His free Salvation (Matthew 23:37; John 5:40). He bore our griefs and sorrows and seemed to have appeared older than He was (John 8:57).

5. His joy was largely the joy of anticipation (Hebrews 12:2; cf. Isaiah 53:11), the joy of seeing the multitude of souls saved and with Him forever in glory.

6.6 He Lived A Life of Prayer

Jesus prayed often. He often prayed before His disciples, but He is never said to have prayed with them. He lived a life of prayer is shown in the following Scriptures:

1. He spent long seasons in prayer, sometimes whole nights (Matthew 14:23; Luke 6:12).

2. At other times He arose early and sought seclusion for prayer (Mark 1:35).

3. While He prayed for Himself, He never forgot to pray also for His own (Luke 22:32; John 17).

4. He prayed before engaging in great tasks: before entering upon a missionary tour in Galilee (Mark 1:35-38); before choosing the twelve apostles (Luke 6:12f); and before He went to Calvary (Matthew 26:38-46).

5. He prayed earnestly (Luke 22:44; Hebrews 5:7); perseveringly (Matthew 26:44); believingly (John 11:41f); and submissively (Matthew 26:39).

6. He also prayed after great successes (John 6:15).

The writer to the Hebrews say, "In the days of His flesh, when He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and who was heard because of His piety" (Hebrews 5:7). If the Son of God needed to pray, how much more do we need to wait upon God.

6.7 He Was A Continual Worker

Jesus said, "My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working" (John 5:17), and "We must work the works of Him who sent Me, as long as it is day; night is coming, when no man can work" (John 9:4). As shown in the following Scriptures, He was a continual worker:

1. Beginning early in the morning (Mark 1:35; John 8:2), He continued until late at night (Matthew 8:16; Luke 6:12; John 3:2).

2. It is interesting to follow Him through a typical busy day (Matthew 12:22-13:53; Mark 3:20-4:41).

3. He forgot about food (John 4:31-34), rest (Mark 6:31), and His own death pains (Luke 23:41-43) when He had the opportunity of helping a needy soul.

4. His work consisted of teaching (Matthew 5-7), preaching (Mark 1:38f), casting out demons (Mark 5:12f), healing the sick (Matthew 8-9), saving the lost (Luke 7:48; 19:9), raising the dead (Matthew 9:25; Luke 7:14; John 11:43), and calling and training His workers (Matthew 10; Luke 10).

5. As a worker, He was characterized by courage (John 2:14-17; 3:3; 19:10f), thoroughness (Matthew 14:36; John 7:23), impartiality (Matthew 11:19), and tact (Mark 12:34; John 4:7-30).

7. THE HUMILIATION OF CHRIST

7.1 Meaning of the Humiliation of Christ

To humiliate someone is to "reduce [them] to a lower position." The word "humiliation" when applied to Jesus Christ describes the great step downward which He made in order to be the God-man.

7.2 The Biblical Evidence

There are two classical passages on this subject:

1. John 17:5, 24; and

2. Philippians 2:5-11.

7.2.1 The Context of John 17:5, 24

In John 17 we get a glimpse of the intensely loving relationship that existed between Father and Son before the incarnation. We also see some of the glory He left behind to become our Saviour (John 17:5, 24).

7.2.2 The Context of Philippians 2:5-11

The most significant Biblical passage dealing with this great condescension is Philippians 2:5-11.

Understanding the author's purpose in writing this chapter is crucial to our interpretation of his words. Paul begins chapter 2 with an appeal to the Philippians to be united (Philippians 2:1-2). He calls upon them to be absolutely selfless, putting other believers ahead of themselves (Philippians 2:3-4). Then, in Philippians 2:5-11 he sets up Jesus as our perfect example of humility and selflessness, and how, as a result of that kind of character, "God highly exalted Him."

The critical point in these verses is that believers are to place the interests of others ahead of their own in the same way Jesus did, that is, He "emptied Himself" (2:7). In the light of the context, the words "emptied Himself" cannot pertain to any change in Jesus' essential being, as is often erroneously taught. It pertains, rather, to Jesus' attitude toward who He was (2:5), and thus provides insight into what He thought about His dual nature.

Even though Christ "existed in the form of God," with all of the rights and privileges of God, He did not "grasp" selfishly for these privileges, but used His divine attributes for our benefit. He "emptied Himself" by refusing to use His divine powers in ways that could have eased His burdens, or eliminate the suffering He endured to provide our redemption. The God-man chose to become a servant first (2:7), over His rightful place as our king (2:10-11).

Only on the appropriate occasions did Christ employ His divine attributes in order to establish His deity and redeem sinners. For, in becoming man, the Son of God never ceased to be God.

In Philippians 2:6 it is to be noted that the humiliation began in Christ's attitude of mind; He thought that being equal with God was not a thing to be grasped or to be forcibly retained. His becoming man was no personal threat to Him. This is an attitude of humility, for the proud are not only anxious to keep everything which they possess, but also to get everything they do not yet have. Two primary things were involved in the incarnation:

1. Christ emptied Himself; and

2. He was made in the likeness of man.

7.3 The Implications of the Words "Emptied Himself"

In the first place, we are told that Christ "emptied Himself" (Philippians 2:7). The Greek word is kenoo, and from it comes the word kenosis.

7.3.1 Wrong interpretations

Unfortunately, many have wrongly interpreted the act which it describes. They say that Christ emptied Himself of His relative attributes:

1. omniscience;

2. omnipotence; and

3. omnipresence

while retaining His immanent attributes:

1. holiness;

2. love; and

3. truth.

It is taught that He had deep knowledge, but not complete; was powerful, but not all-powerful. This, however, is not the case.

7.3.2 Christ asserted His divine knowledge

As shown in the following Scriptures, Christ repeatedly asserted His divine knowledge:

1. We read that "He knew all men," that "He Himself knew what was in man" (John 2:24f), and that He knew "all the things that were coming upon Him" (John 18:4).

2. As for His power, we not only read that He rebuked the wind, miraculously fed the hungry, healed the sick, cast out demons, and raised the dead, but that He frequently called on the people to believe Him for His works' sake, if they would not believe His words (John 6:36; 10:25, 37f; 14:11; 15:24).

3. John presented several selected miracles from the ministry of Christ so that His readers might "believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing" they might "have life in His name" (John 20:31).

4. Surely, the works of Elijah and Elisha did not indicate that they were God incarnate, since they performed them through the power of the Spirit; but we are called on to believe that Christ is God because of the works which He did. This can only be the case if He wrought them, at least many of them, by the power of His own deity. Christ worked miracles through His own inherent power (Matthew 9:28), the apostles performed them in the name of Christ, and Christ at times performed miracles in the power of the Holy Spirit, and not His own (Matthew 12:28).

7.3.3 Several things did happen in the humiliation of Christ

Several things did happen in the humiliation of Christ:

1. In some manner His divine glory was veiled, but not surrendered (John 1:14; 2:11; 17:5).

2. He willingly left the riches of heaven to take on human poverty (2 Corinthians 8:9).

3. He took on unglorified human flesh which was subject to weakness, pain, temptation, and limitation.

4. He voluntarily chose not to use His prerogatives of deity, such as His omnipotence, omnipresence, and omniscience, to make His way easier.

5. He wearied, travelled from one point to another, and grew in wisdom and knowledge.

6. Though He did not surrender His divine attributes, He willingly submitted to not exercising certain attributes of deity so that He could identify with man.

As Walvoord writes,

"The act of kenosis ... may ... be properly understood to mean that Christ surrendered no attributes of Deity, but that He did voluntarily restrict their independent use in keeping with His purpose of living among men and their limitations" (John Walvoord, Jesus Christ Our Lord, p. 144).

7.3.4 Christ merely surrendered the independent exercise of some of His relative attributes

It is evident that the Scriptures teach that Christ merely surrendered the independent exercise of some of His relative or transitive attributes. He did not surrender the absolute or immanent attributes in any sense; He was always:

1. perfectly holy;

2. just;

3. merciful;

4. truthful;

5. faithful; and

6. loved with all the intensity of His being.

But He emptied Himself by giving up the independent exercise of His relative attributes. Thus He was omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent as the Father granted Him the exercise of these attributes. This is involved in:

1. His giving up the glory which He had with the Father before the world was (John 17:5); and

2. His taking on the form of a servant (Philippians 2:6).

That this is the true view is evident from the fact that Jesus speaks of the things that the Father had:

1. shown Him (John 5:20; 8:38);

2. taught Him (John 8:28);

3. given Him to do (John 5:36); and

4. given Him certain authority (John 10:18).

The Father had "anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power" (Acts 10:38), that He:

1. cast out demons by the Holy Spirit (Matthew 12:28);

2. by the Holy Spirit gave commandments to the apostles (Acts 1:2); and

3. offered Himself to God through the eternal Spirit (Hebrews 9:14).

As Muller observes:

"By taking the form of a servant He emptied Himself. Nothing is mentioned of any abandonment of divine attributes, the divine nature or the form of God, but only a divine paradox is stated here: He emptied Himself by taking something to Himself, namely the manner of being, the nature or form of a servant or slave. At His incarnation He remained in the form of God and as such He is Lord and Ruler over all, but He also accepted the nature of a servant as part of His humanity" (Muller, The Epistles of Paul to the Philippians and to Philemon, p. 82).

7.4 He Was Made in the Likeness of Men

As mentioned in the following Scriptures, Christ was made in the likeness of men:

1. Though He existed in the form of God, He came to be in the likeness of men (Philippians 2:7).

2. The one who was and is by nature God, became man. John declared that "the Word became flesh" (John 1:14; cf. 1 John 4:2f; 2 John 7).

3. Christ was given a human body (Hebrews 10:5) so that God could dwell among us (John 1:14).

4. In Christ "all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form" (Colossians 2:9).

7.5 Christ Took on Flesh Does Not Mean that He Took on Sinful Flesh

That Christ took on flesh does not mean that He took on sinful flesh. Paul asserts that God sent "His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh" (Romans 8:3). Concerning the expression "sinful flesh," Murray clarifies it,

"Paul is using the word 'likeness' not for the purpose of suggesting any unreality in respect of our Lord's human nature. That would contradict Paul's express language elsewhere in this epistle and in His other epistles. He is under the necessity of using this word here because He uses the term 'sinful flesh' and could not have said that Christ was sent in 'sinful flesh'. That would have contradicted the sinlessness of Jesus for which the New Testament is jealous throughout (Murray, The Epistle to the Romans, I, p. 280).

7.6 Christ Took the Form of A Servant While He Retained the Form of God

Other Scriptures which speak of the incarnation are Romans 1:3; Galatians 4:4; 1 Timothy 3:16; and Hebrews 2:14. Not only did Christ become man, but while being in the form of God, He took on the form of a servant (Philippians 2:7). Hendriksen explains,

"The text cannot mean that 'he exchanged the form of God for the form of a servant,' as is so often asserted. He took the form of a servant while He retained the form of God! It is exactly that which makes our Salvation possible and achieves it" (Hendriksen, Exposition of Philippians, p. 109).

7.7 Jesus Christ Was A Living Example of Humility

In the words "I am meek and lowly in heart" (Matthew 11:29), Jesus gave us a glimpse into His inmost heart. If pride is the greatest and essential sin, then humility is the supreme virtue; and if humility was the distinguishing feature of the Master, then it must characterize the disciple, for "servant is not greater than his lord" (John 13:16). Jesus Christ was a living example of humility.

John Ruskin writes,

"I believe the first test of a truly great man is his humility. I do not mean by humility doubt of his own power, or hesitation in speaking his own opinions; but a right understanding of the relation between what he can do, and the rest of the world's sayings and doings ... only they do not expect their fellow-men therefore to fall down and worship them."

7.8 A Despised Grace

The works of the great philosophers of past days will be searched in vain for the exaltation of humility as a virtue. There is no word in either Greek or Latin that expresses the Christian idea of humility. The word "lowly," which Jesus appropriated to Himself, is employed by ethical philosophers in the sense of "pusillanimous."

Not until Jesus came with His peerless life and matchless teaching was humility elevated to the level of a primary virtue. Humility as a grace is the creation of Christianity. Our Lord's pronouncements on the subject introduced His disciples to a startlingly new and revolutionary scale of values. "He that shall humble Himself shall be exalted" (Matthew 23:12). "He that is least among you all, the same shall be great" (Luke 9:48). It was a difficult lesson for them to master, that humility was to be desired, not despised.

Meekness plus lowliness constitutes humility. Meekness is humility in relation to God. Lowliness is humility in relation to man. It is possible to be meek and not lowly. Jesus was just as meek toward God as He was lowly before man.

Otto Borchert contrasts the genuine humility of the Lord, which manifested itself in the utter absence of any striving after effect or originality, with Mohammed, who was always sensitive to his personal appearance. The vanity of Buddha peeps through the rags of his beggar's cloak. But Jesus moved about in the unaffected guise of ordinary folk. "He humbled Himself."

This other-worldly humility that was "an effluence and an ally of His love," was seen most clearly in His giving up the outward manifestation of His deity and taking His place in humanity, and then giving up even His place in humanity! This was humility indeed.

Think of His attitude toward worldly position: "Is not this the carpenter's son?" (Matthew 13:55). Toward earthly riches: "For your sakes He became poor" (2 Corinthians 8:9). Toward service: "I am among you as He that serveth" (Luke 22:27). Toward suffering: "I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened until it be accomplished" (Luke 12:50).

The completeness with which Jesus laid aside the independent excercise of His divine attributes and subordinated Himself to His Father is seen in the following passages: "I seek not mine own will" (John 5:30). "I seek not mine own glory" (John 8:50). "My doctrine is not mine" (John 7:16). "The Son can do nothing of Himself" (John 5:19). "I am not come of myself" (John 7:28). "The word which ye hear is not mine" (John 14:24). "I do nothing of myself" (John 8:28). Christ was willing to be nothing, in order that His Father might be all.

Jesus' humility was so absolute that His Father was able to achieve His whole will through Him. Because He so humbled Himself, "God also hath highly exalted Him" (Philippians 2:9). Because His humility was the expression of His innermost attitude and not a temporary pose, He unostentatiously donned the slave's apron, and moved in and out among men as the servant of all. He drew attention to neither His achievements nor His humility.

Nowhere was His humility more strikingly displayed than in the way in which He bore insult and injury. During His brief years of ministry almost every form of trial assailed Him. A dozen times plots were laid against His life. What would be the attitude of a modern dictator to a would-be assassin? They said He was demon-possessed. They said He was mad. They slandered Him as a glutton and a drunkard. They impugned His motives and cast aspersions on His character. But all those combined failed to elicit one drop of bitterness or draw forth one word of complaint or self-justification from His lips. He was "as a sheep before her shearers ... dumb" (Isaiah 53:7).

7.9 He took a towel

There are only two places in Scripture where it is explicitly stated that our Lord left us an example, and one of them was an example of unparalleled humility.

The disciples had gone to a room where the Last Supper had been prepared. On the way, the ambitious disciples had been quarreling over who should be the greatest and who would have precedence in Christ's kingdom. When they entered the room, there was apparently no slave to perform the customary washing of the feet of the guests. The disciples probably took turns when there was no slave, but on this occasion none would condescend to do the menial task. Their minds were full of the subject of their bitter contention, and none was willing to be servant of all. Each feigned unconsciousness of the neglected duty.

When Jesus entered, He found them seated in sulky silence, and supper must have been a gloomy meal. The scene that followed is described in moving words: "And supper being ended ... Jesus knowing ... that He was come from God, and went to God; He riseth from supper, and laid aside His garments; and took a towel, and girded Himself ... and began to wash the disciples' feet, and wipe them with the towel" (John 13:2-5).

The quality of this act of humility is heightened by the fact that Jesus performed it while vividly conscious of His divine origin and nature. He knew that He came from God's presence. None of the disciples would confess himself inferior to another, but when the divine Lord remembered who He was, He rose up and performed the lowliest of tasks. And it was no act of ostentation; He did it just because He liked to do this for His disciples. On the other hand we should not overlook the fact that when people fell in worship at His feet, Jesus did not bid them stand up. He accepted their worship as His due (Luke 7:38).

7.10 Jesus' teaching on humility

A selection of Scripture passages will reveal the high place our Lord accorded to this grace:

1. Blessed are the poor in spirit (Matthew 5:3).

2. Blessed are the meek (Matthew 5:5).

3. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest (Matthew 18:4).

4. He that humbleth himself shall be exalted (Luke 14:11).

5. He that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve (Luke 22:26).

6. I am among you as he that serveth (Luke 22:27).

7. Learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart (Matthew 11:29).

8. He that is least among you all, the same shall be great (Luke 9:48).

To read these passages thoughtfully is to be convicted of our own lack of humility. Our pride stands abashed in the presence of His utter humility. One fact stands out crystal clear - God's way up is down.

Andrew Murray indicates the way in which our Lord's humility may become ours:

"It is only by the indwelling of Christ in His divine humility that we become truly humble. We have our pride from another, from Adam; we must have our humility from another too. Pride is ours, and rules us with such terrible power, because it is ourself, our very nature. Humility must be ours in the same way; it must be in our very self, our very nature. The promise is, 'where,' even in the heart, 'sin abounded, grace did abound more exceedingly.'"

8. REFERENCES AND RECOMMENDATION FOR FURTHER STUDY

1. Lectures in Systematic Theology, Chapters XXIII and XXIV, Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, 1992 Edition, by Henry C. Thiessen.

2. Thy Word Is Truth, Lesson 4, Emmaus Bible College, 1972 Edition, by William MacDonald.

3. The Incomparable Christ - The Person and Work of Jesus Christ, Chapters 3-7, 10-12, and 17-19, Moody Press, 1971 Edition, by John Oswald Sanders.

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